North Star Asset Management Inc. Sells 4,215 Shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated $UNH

North Star Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 13.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,250 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after selling 4,215 shares during the quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $8,665,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 91,600,260 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $30,238,162,000 after buying an additional 995,210 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,766,922 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $7,516,107,000 after buying an additional 3,439,182 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 17,499,949 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $6,042,710,000 after buying an additional 1,747,337 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 126.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 13,042,049 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $4,503,419,000 after buying an additional 7,293,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dodge & Cox raised its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 9,505,636 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock valued at $3,282,296,000 after buying an additional 755,076 shares in the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNH opened at $388.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $352.74 billion, a PE ratio of 29.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $326.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $319.63. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a one year low of $234.60 and a one year high of $404.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.76 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $111.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $109.84 billion. UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 14.65%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $7.20 earnings per share. UnitedHealth Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 18.250- EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 18.29 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were given a dividend of $2.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $8.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.77%.

Key Headlines Impacting UnitedHealth Group

Here are the key news stories impacting UnitedHealth Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raised its price target on UnitedHealth Group to $460 from $410 and reiterated a Buy rating, signaling meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga report on UBS target increase
• Positive Sentiment: UnitedHealth was highlighted by multiple outlets as a high-quality stock and a turnaround bet, with commentary noting that managed care is outgrowing the broader economy and that the company is benefiting from AI adoption in operations. Motley Fool article on AI and turnaround
• Neutral Sentiment: UnitedHealth also appeared in a hedge-fund “high quality stocks” list and a Goldman Sachs conviction-list discussion, which supports the stock’s investment case but does not change fundamentals on its own. InsiderMonkey article on turnaround case
• Negative Sentiment: There is still headline risk around Medicare Advantage overpayments, with a Congressional committee estimating about $7 billion annually in excess payments to private insurers, which could keep regulatory scrutiny on managed-care names like UNH. 247WallSt article on Medicare Advantage overpayments
• Negative Sentiment: Recent discussion also noted that Berkshire-linked selling contributed to a prior stock slide, underscoring that investor sentiment can still turn quickly. Barchart article on Berkshire stake sale

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Patrick Hugh Conway sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.00, for a total transaction of $284,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,320,775. This trade represents a 4.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on UNH. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $370.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of UnitedHealth Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $389.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $311.00 to $337.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $387.57.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

UnitedHealth Group Inc is a diversified health care company headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, that operates two primary business platforms: UnitedHealthcare and Optum. Founded in 1977, the company provides a broad range of health benefits and health care services to individuals, employers, governmental entities and other organizations. Its operations span commercial employer-sponsored plans, individual and Medicare and Medicaid programs, and services for customers and health systems in the United States and selected international markets.

UnitedHealthcare is the company’s benefits business, administering health plans and networks, managing provider relationships, and offering coverage products for employers, individuals, and government-sponsored programs.